Corliss Group Review Millions of Android Phones Could Be Affected by the Heartbleed Bug

According
to an announcement by Google, smartphones and tablets running a specific version
of Android were affected by the widespread web security bug, which could potentially
spill your sensitive login information (like passwords).

The
company assured Android owners in a blog post April 9 that most versions are
not affected by the flaw. However, as Bloomberg notes, Google added that a
version called 4.1.1 Jelly Bean is a “limited exception.”

That
version of Android was released in 2012 and is likely to be running on older
Android smartphones. According to the most recent statistics released by
Google, about 34 percent of Android devices use a version of the 4.1 Jelly Bean
software. Though the company said that fewer than 10 percent of devices in use
are vulnerable, a Google spokesperson confirmed to Bloomberg that millions of
devices still run 4.1.1 Jelly Bean.

So
how can you check to see if your device is affected? You’ll need to go to the
Settings menu of your phone and find your way to the About Phone section. There
you’ll be able to learn what version of Android you’re running and see if any
updates are available.

There’s
also a free Android app available that will tell you if your device is
vulnerable to the bug.

Whether
there is an immediate update to patch this bug is still unclear. Google’s blog
post says that “patching information for Android 4.1.1 is being distributed to
Android partners.” A Verizon spokesperson told Bloomberg that the company was
aware of the “security vulnerability referred to as ‘Heartbleed,’ ” and that
the company was “working with our device manufacturers to test and deploy
patches to any affected device on our network running Android 4.1.1.”

We’ve
reached out to Google for comment. In the meantime, fingers crossed that you’re
not affected.